Conservative National Party (Dranland)
The 'Conservative National Party '(CNP) was a conservative, market-oriented political party in Dranland founded in 3389 by Grand National Party defector Elaine Duvalle, Mayor of Santa Sharika. In 3405, the CNP merged into the GNP and dissolved. It was one of the major Dranish political parties, with a Parliamentary party of 31 members at the time of its dissolution. It was part of the national government between 3402 and 3405. It was last led by President Geoffrey Fox and Parliamentary Chairperson Margaret Woodhall. Note: All information below that has not been updated since was correct immediately prior to the dissolution of the CNP, unless otherwise stated. History Founding The Grand National Party (GNP) went into the elections of June 3389 as the largest party in terms of Parliamentary representation, with 93 seats, under the leadership of Prime Minister Delia Breckinridge. The GNP also, prior to the election, controlled the Presidency. However, the elections saw the GNP lose five seats (all to the Partido Acción Ciudadana (PAC)), its legislative plurality and the Presidency (which was won by the PAC). Breckinridge's already weakened position was further compromised by the startling disclosure by the socially conservative former Magadonia Governor Vivian Trelawney (who had been removed from office in the 3389 election) that Breckinridge had agreed to devolve authority over abortion so that Provincial Governors could ban it if they so wished. Breckinbridge, despite strong condemnation by her Parliamentary colleagues, refused to resign. The uproar resulted in a successful motion to remove Breckinridge. Subsequently, in October, Janice LeCoultre, former Finance Minister and sister of former Prime Minister Marina LeCoultre, challenged Breckinridge for the chairpersonship of the GNP, and, in the absence of other candidates, prevailed in the first ballot by a majority of 11%. However, Breckinridge was not removed from the office of Prime Minister due to support for her from Ministers. The removal of the traditionalist Breckinbridge and her replacement by the much more liberal LeCoultre resulted in dissent from the traditionalist wing of the GNP. Among the disgruntled traditionalists was Elaine Duvalle, the prominent and popular Mayor of Santa Sharika. In mid-November, 3389, she stunned the Dranish political establishment by defecting from the GNP and founding the Conservative National Party (CNP). She stated at a Conservative Citizens' Union (a conservative pressure group) meeting that: "I have been a loyal and committed member of the GNP for twenty-five years, but with recently developments at the highest levels of the national party organisation, I have come to a sobering and unfortunate conclusion. The beliefs of the GNP are no longer mine, and therefore, with sadness and regret, but also with hope for the restoration of the values of the Dranish nation, I will, with immediate effect, relinquish my membership of the GNP... I establish the Conservative National Party, devoted to the values of the family, to morality and tradition, to patriotism, and to the free market. United, we can from the spearhead of the thrust for national restoration, we can take the fight to Iglesia Mayor. Duvalle (3389 - 3393) Despite strong criticism from all of the three established parties, the GNP, PAC and Popular Party (PP), and notable politicians including former Prime Minister Marina LeCoultre, GNP Chairperson Janice LeCoultre and PP Leader Tom Marshall, two GNP parliamentarians, the veteran politician James McClellan and minority Kyo MP Orito Mori, daughter of former President Sosuke Mori, defected to the CNP. There was praise for the CNP from conservative elements of the PAC, but no defections, giving the CNP a Parliamentary caucus of two members. Vivian Trelwaney (the aforementioned Governor of Magadonia) also defected shortly after along with several less notable local officials. In April 3391, Elaine Duvalle unveiled the CNP's twin manifestos, Restoring Our Values which described the CNP's social agenda, and Building Our Nation. The first came under fire from all fronts, while the second was criticised by the left-leaning parties by (largely) supported by the GNP. In July, to rally support for the CNP, Duvalle embarked on a two-week long speaking tour that would traverse the country, speaking at every major city. In November, two years after the party's establishment, Duvalle announced the CNP's frontbench team, which would take over as soon as the next elections. In late 3392, the proposal of the controversial and divisive Sanctity of Life and Marriage Act ''would precipitate, several months later, a major political drama in Dranland. The GNP ordered its MPs to vote against the bill in accordance with the party line, despite the pleas of traditionalist members such as Jack O'Keeffe in an open letter, with severe penalties for those that dared to rebel against the three-line whip. The result was a massive backbench revolt in April, where twenty GNP MPs voted for the bill, and Delia Breckinbridge (who had just resigned as Prime Minister after losing a motion of confidence) abstained. Eventually, all twenty-one dissenting members left the GNP and joined the CNP. Breckinridge (3393 - 3397) After her defection, Delia Breckinridge became the Parliamentary Chairperson of the CNP, which, although technically junior to the Party President, is in fact the most powerful party position (an exception was during the early years, during which Duvalle had more control). James McClellan had stepped down from that role in her favour, and she assumed the position without anyone else contesting the ballot. In the elections of 3393, the CNP firmly established itself as a major Dranish political party despite having the lowest Parliamentary representation, winning 50 seats. Haruo Tanabe was elected Governor of Valdor. However, its Presidential candidate Mikiyasu Chouda failed to make it to the run-off. Despite this, the CNP's electoral result was sufficiently satisfying to be called a "victory" by many senior figures within the party, such as Elaine Duvalle and Delia Breckinridge. The newly elected Elaine Duvalle became the Vice Parliamentary Chairperson. To replace her as CNP President, Chouda became the CNP President; his Vice President is former Magadonia Governor Vivian Trelawney (who is also the party's Magadonia President). Meanwhile, throught late 3393, the vicious personal rivalry between CNP founder Elaine Duvalle and PP Leader Tom Marshall continued. After Marshall accused the CNP of rigging the elections (not explicitly, though) and called CNP supporters "morons", the two could not restrain themselves from sparring whenever they recieved the opportunity. In a high public incident during weekly Prime Minister's Questions, Duvalle and Marshall (then acting Prime Minister) were thrown out of Parliament's debating chamber by Speaker Joel Hudspeth after throwing personal insults at each other (for example, Marshall called Duvalle a "dumb bitch"). Although this proved an embarrassment to the party, there was better news for the CNP at the provincial level. Dexter Rolland, the CNP's legislative leader in Valdor, was able to form government in November 3393, becoming First Minister of Valdor in a CNP-GNP government. In February 3394, the CNP was able to force its way into government in Magadonia as the GNP's junior coalition partner by successfully moving that the GNP-PP government had lost the provincial assembly's confidence, despite Governor James Chadwick's reluctance for the GNP to join with the CNP. In mid-3394, the CNP suffered another public embarrasment when freshman MP Roy Hanes was forced to resign after an extramartial affair. A by-election was held for his seat; the CNP candidate, predictably, lost by a massive margin against the GNP candidate. However, at a simultaneous by-election in President John Westwood's seat (Westwood had forfeited his seat after winning the Presidency), the CNP candidate prevailed, taking the seat, one of the GNP's safest, from the GNP for the first time in a century-and-a-half. This was a major psychological blow to the GNP. In September 3396, the CNP held the first elections for its Conventions, both at the national and provincial levels. Two months later, the CNP held its first annual Conventions, unlike earlier Conventions which had been called on the volition of the party leadership. Geoffrey Fox replaced Mikiyasu Chouda as CNP President, while Vice President Trelawney was replaced by James McClellan, who was himself replaced as First Secretary by Margaret Woodhall . The CNP nominated Elaine Duvalle for the Presidential election; no major candidates ran against her, and she won with over 90% of the vote. At the national Convention, the CNP also, as a symbolic act, adopted a new slogan which was intended to show that the CNP was not simply a single-issue party devoted to social conservatism. The old slogan, ''Restoring the values of Dranland, was replaced with Restoring Dranish values, creating growth and jobs, projecting strength abroad. At the elections of June 3397, the CNP suffered a dramatic electoral defeat, losing almost half of its Parliamentary Party. It lost also the Governoship of Valdor, and its Presidential candidate, Elaine Duvalle, fared poorly. However, there was a massive backlash against the successful Valdorian Blue Shirt Movement (VBSM), described by all other parties as 'fascist' or some variation thereof. With Breckinridge's leadership crippled by the electoral defeat, challengers emerged with the intent of gaining her position for themselves. Most notably, Breckinridge was challenged by Duvalle. Foreign Affairs spokesperson Geoffrey Fox also ran, and would unexpectedly prevail. The first few rounds of the leadership election were marked by tactical voting; eventually, Breckinridge pulled out in favour of Fox to prevent Duvalle from winning, resulting in neither Fox or Duvalle winning a majority. The election thus went to the Convention, which elected Fox by a very narrow margin. Fox (3397 - 3402) Geoffrey Fox, the incumbent CNP President, resigned immediately prior to entering office as Parliamentary Chairperson. He was replaced as President by James McClellan, the Vice President, in an acting capacity, before a permanent replacement, Mikiyasu Chouda, was elected to a second term. Just over a month into the beginning of his tenure, Fox decided on a major frontbench reshuffle. Nathaniel Beam, previously at Defence, replaced Fox in Foreign Affairs; Defence was occupied by Rhys Narberth, who in turn was replaced as Deputy Whip by Loretta Elliot. Elliot vacated Trade and Industry, which was given to Elaine Duvalle as a consolation prize to unite the party. Vivian Trelawney, an implacable ideological foe of Fox's, was dropped from the frontbench and replaced in Health/Social Services by Mikiyasu Chouda, who was replacedin Education/Culture by Azusa Machida. Finally, in return for her endorsement in the leadership election, Delia Breckinridge, a former Interior Minister as well as Prime Minister, was given Internal Affairs, replacing Orito Mori, whose father Sosuke Mori was also Interior Minister prior to becoming President. Less than a year after Fox took office, the CNP was struck by the resignation of one of its most important figures, Vivian Trelawney. She suffered a massive stroke that left her paralysed from the waist down. Within several days of the stroke, she resigned as an MP, and relinquished her party leadership positions, stating that she intended to focus on her recovery. In July 3399, Fox faced a challenge against his leadership, which had not even entered its third year, as he had aliented his libertarian-leaning supporters (who he had angered with his right-ward turn) and more conservative members, who wanted a genuine conservative instead of a conservative for political expedience. A successful spill motion resulted in a leadership election, which was a narrow affair resulting, on the third round, in a Fox victory against Duvalle. However, a Convention vote was avoided as Fox won fifteen to fourteen. Shortly after, Duvalle faced Magaret Woodhall, who had just been defeated in the leadership election, in a contest for her position of Vice Chairperson. In a surprise victory, Woodhall prevailed, against fifteen to fourteen, on the only round. Duvalle was left with the frontbench position of Trade and Industry; Woodhall left the positions of Chief Whip and First Secretary to Orito Mori, who thus returned to the frontbench. The death of Vivian Trelawney after a second massive stroke in May 3400 was a major shock to the CNP, although she had by then become politically irrelevant after her resignation over a year ago. Despite political differences, political leaders throughout the nation, including Geoffrey Fox, Elaine Duvalle and Prime Minister Janice LeCoultre expressed grief over her death. Under the leadership of Fox and Woodhall, the CNP moved much closer to the GNP. In November 3400, at the CNP national Convention, little changed in terms of the CNP leadership. However, in a symbolic move of great importance, the CNP did not field a Presidential candidate, and instead decided to endorse the GNP's candidate for President, Hideo Enomoto, who was ultimately elected. The party's campaign slogan, adopted at the Convention, was? A United Front for a Free Country, Leading Dranland into a New Millennium, emphasising its increasing willingness to collaborate with the GNP. The elections saw the CNP's Parliamentary Party increased slightly to 31. Subsequently, the CNP participated in a right-wing government led by the PP's Jose Gomez which also included the GNP and PLA. This was the first time in which the CNP had been included in a national government. Geoffrey Fox, now the Defence Minister, announced that he intended to resign to better focus on the responsibilities of being a Minister. He did so in May 3402. Woodhall (3402 - ) In early May, 3402, after Geoffrey Fox's resignation, Margaret Woodhall took over the party as acting Parliamentary Chairperson. Two weeks later, Woodhall was elected Chairperson on a permanent basis, defeating Elaine Duvalle in the last round of the internal election. Rhys Narberth, Defence spokesperson and former Deputy Whip, succeeded Woodhall as Vice Chairperson. Chief Whip Orito Mori resigned after the vote. Loretta Elliot replaced her, while Narberth was replaced by Sidney Murray. In November of that year, the CNP's national Convention did not result in any leadership changes; however, it importantly endorsed the leadership's proposal to work more closely with the GNP and even discuss a merger between the GNP and CNP. That fuelled further speculation about the bipartisan union. Although some prominent CNP members criticised the proposal, among them Elaine Duvalle, polls showed that most CNP and GNP members were supportive of a merger. During Woodhall's tenure, Green Solidarity proposed the banning of the use of weapons of mass destruction by the Dranish military. This was vehemently opposed by the CNP, whose effort to prevent the passage of the bill was led by Defence Minsiter Geoffrey Fox. Nevertheless, the bill passed. The leftist parties suggested that the passage of this bill against Fox's wishes meant that he had lost the confidence of Parliament and should resign, but he refused to resign unless the Prime Minister asked him to step aside. The CNP would also actively fight against many socialist pieces of legislation. Most prominent was the National Railways Act. This was a moderately significant bill in terms of its practical effect, but the way in which it was framed by its proposers meant that it took on an immense political significance as a microcosm of the conflict between equality and class apartheid, as the leftist parties stated, or oppression and freedom, as the right-wing parties contended. The bill was ultimately defeated. In September 3404, negotiations between the CNP and GNP over a merger were completed. In November, the CNP leadership put the re-union deal to a vote before the Convention; it had the support of a secure two-thirds majority. This meant that the proposal was to be voted upon by the entire membership of the CNP. It was supported by a safe majority, and thus, the CNP would merge into the GNP on March 1, 3405. Elections Electoral dynamics Note: This section may be out of date Given that the Dranish electorate has generally been fairly socially liberals, it is little surprise that in the last elections, the CNP won the fewest seats out of all four major parties. However, the CNP has pockets of support around the country. Most of the CNP's support comes from the elderly, especially the more well-to-do senior citizens, as well as the from the Kyo community, which is demographically strong in Magadonia (this is one of the contributing factors to the CNP's relative strength in that province). The devoutly religious are more likely to be CNP supporters. Due to the CNP's pro-business stance, many business owners are supportive of the CNP, although somewhat more tend to support the GNP. In Valdor, CNP founder Elaine Duvalle's home province, the party recently established itself a dominant political force, before losing significant amounts of support in 3397. The elections of June 3393 marked a massive rightward swing by Valdor voters, which had hitherto voted for left-wing candidates. The province of Magadonia is also a CNP stronghold relative to its performance in other provinces. Electoral performance !align=center|Year !align=center|Chairperson !align=center|Seats !align=center|Seats (%) !align=center|Change in Seats !align=center|Votes !align=center|Votes (%) !align=center|Swing (%) |- |rowspan=2|Jun 3393||align=left|Delia Breckinridge |50||20.00||▲27||12,393,448||20.40||▲20.40 |- |colspan=7 align=left|First election contested by CNP, with Parliamentary Party of 23 due to defections, CNP in opposition |- |rowspan=2|Jun 3397||align=left|Delia Breckinridge |29||11.60||▼21||7,613,089||12.19||▼8.21 |- |colspan=7 align=left|CNP in opposition |- |rowspan=2|Jun 3397||align=left|Geoffrey Fox |31||12.40||▲2||8,472,159||13.05||▲0.86 |- |colspan=7 align=left|CNP PP-CNP-CNP-PLA coalition government, bipartisan GNP-CNP campaign |} Structure National overview Convention The CNP's highest organ is the Convention, which elects the Central Committee and its officers, such as the Party President every two years. The Convention is also in charge of approving the Parliamentary Chairperson's legislative agenda and platform, and selects the party's Presidential candidate prior to elections. It meets on an annual basis, although special meetings can be called by the Central Committee. The Convention is composed of the Parliamentary Party and 1300 delegates. A thousand of the delegates are elected and allotted to the provinces on the basis of the membership of that provincial branch, while three hundred are allotted to a number of CNP-affiliated organisations (such as the Conservative Citizen's Union) on the basis of membership. The members of the Parliamentary Party have the weight of their votes adjusted so that their total voting power is equal to that of two hundred delegates, meaning that there are a total of 1500 votes. As stated above, the Convention selects the party's Presidential candidates. The instant runoff voting system is used to make this selection. However, an incumbent President has the right to refuse to allow a Convention challenge and will thus automatically win re-nomination, although they may waive this privilege. However, if the President in question has served for more than ten years, or their will is over-ruled by two-thids of the Convention, they will be forced to face a re-nomination contest. Central Committee The Central Committee is the highest organisational body of the party. It is responsible for the CNP's fundraising, campaigning and administration through its control of subordinate bodies, such as the Secretariat. The Party President, Vice President and First Secretary are ex officio ''members of the Central Commitee. It is composed also of a number of senior provincial and Parliamentary leaders, the President of the Conservative Youth and the Editor-in-Chief of the Conservative Press, and 22 other members; the latter are elected by the Convention at annual meetings. Parliamentary Party Although the Convention and Central Committee technically are the most senior organs of the CNP, the actual centre of the party's power lies with its Parliamentary Party. Every MP from the party is automatically a member of the Parliamentary Party, although under certain circumstances they can be suspended or expelled while still remaining a member of the CNP proper. The Parliamentary Party elects its senior leaders, the Chairperson, Vice Chairperson and Chief Whip. The remaining leadership positions are appointed. The spokespeople for the party in certain portfolios (the CNP counterpart to ministers) are all members of the Parliamentary Party's frontbench team. Connected with the Parliamentary Party is the Backbench Caucus. This is a subgroup of the Parliamentary Party, and is composed of backbenchers only, allowing the rank and file of the party to impose a significant check on the powers of the Parliamentary leadership, short of removing them outright (a power which only the Parliamentary Party possesses). The Backbench Caucus elects its own Chairperson. Members of the party's Parliamentary leadership have no vote in the Backbench Caucus, and technically cannot attend its meetings unless invited by a backbencher (although the invitation has become a regular formality). Branches The CNP, as well as having a national party organisation, has a number of smaller branches at the provincial and local levels. The provincial branches are fairly independent of the national party, while the local branches are fairly independent of the provincial party and almost totally free of national control. The provincial branches are organised on similar lines to the national CNP organisation, with a Convention and a Provincial Committee (the equivalent of the Central Committee), led by a Provincial President. The equivalent of the Parliamentary Party at the provincial level is called the Legislative Caucus, which, like its national counterpart, is the genuine centre of gravity of the party and determines its own leadership. The Backbench Caucus, a semi-formalised national innovation, has been emulated in a number of provincial Legislative Caucuses, but not all. The grassroots organisation of the CNP is formed by the local branches. These branches are composed of all of the CNP members in a certain geographical area, generally corresponding to one electoral district or one local government area. However, in cities (a type of local government area, in this context), multiple branches are merged to form one; the original branches are re-classified as sub-branches. Branches and sub-branches are led by a President and a Local Committee, while their size eliminates the need for anything resembling a Convention, except in the largest cities. Youth League and Party Newspaper The CNP's youth organisation is called the Conservative Youth. It is composed of all CNP members between 18 and 25, although one can opt to retain membership until the age of 28. Additionally, those under the minimum age for joining the CNP proper (ie. 18) can join the Conservative Youth at the age of 12. The Conservative Youth mirrors the use of Conventions and Central/Provincial Committees and is one of the affiliated organisations represented at the actual party Convention. As stated above, the President of the Conservative Youth is a member of the Central Committee The CNP's party newspaper is called the Conservative Press. It is published weekly, although special events can cause a one-off paper to be published. It is automatically delivered to all party members and available for sale. The Editor-in-Chief of the Conservatie Press is a member of the Central Committee. Leadership Leadership at time of dissolution ''Note: Positions in normal text denote positions within the party. Positions in italic text denote positions within the government. Note 2: A portfolio name refers to the relevant CNP spokespersonship if in normal text, or the relevant ministry if in italic text. Note 3: "Chairperson" refers to Legislative Chairperson below. List of Presidents List of Vice Presidents List of First Secretaries List of Chairpeople List of Vice Chairpeople Factions The CNP began to develop factions and alliances quite early on in its history, although like the GNP, it has no formal, organised factions. There are four main factions: the libertarians, populists, centrists and hard-core conservatives. The libertarians, more accurately described as libertarian-leaning conservatives, are more tolerant socially (though still remaining conservative) and are strong supporters of the free market. They have a tendency to be fairly isolationist and disapprove to overly strong law enforcement. Notable libertarians Margaret Woodhall and Geoffrey Fox. The populists are in favour of greater state intervention in the economy, although they are still clearly right-of-centre, but are socially conservative. The populists have no unified views on foreign policy; instead they concentrate on domestic issues. It is easily the smallest faction, and includes Orito Mori and Mikiyasu Chouda. The centrist faction, as its name suggests, are more moderate both in terms of their attitude towards society and the economy. Its members are moderately open to relations with foreign nations, although rarely overtly enthusiastic. It is perceived as more willing to compromise with other parties. Among the centrists are Delia Breckinridge, James McClellan and Dorita Durante-Rosales. The final faction is the hard-core conservative faction. While strongly supportive of a nearly totally unregulated market, it is far more keen on government intervention in citizens' private lives. It is the most militarist of the factions, and supports massively expanding the powers of law enforcement. Its members actively oppose immigration and foreign aid. Hard-core conservatives include Vivian Trelawney and Jack O'Keeffe. Given that the factions are not formalised and have no official recognition from the CNP party organisation, there are many CNP members that cannot be clearly categorised. For example, CNP founder and Vice Parliamentary Chairperson Elaine Duvalle cannot be said to be a hard-core conservative, but can be considered hard-core leaning. Final Parliamentary Party Note: Positions in normal text denote positions within the Parliamentary Party. Positions in italic text denote positions within the government. Positions in small text denote formerly held positions. Note 2: A portfolio name refers to the relevant CNP spokespersonship if in normal text, or the relevant ministry if in italic text. Note 3: Incumbent members are highlighted in yellow. Category:Political parties in Dankuk